Discussion for article #223178
Marriage equality is progressing because people are becoming sympathetic to the cause. However, this kind of antagonism against anyone who disagrees is not going to help win any new hearts or minds. This accusation also devalues the experience of all people (gay and straight) who have had to deal with real hate-speech. I understand how infuriating this type of disingenuous comment can be (as if anarchy is his true concern and suppression of the gay community is purely incidental). However, what he said is not hate speech, and calling it such will only serve to make the accused appear more sympathetic.
The correct way to address this is to call the governor out on his hypocrisy rather than resorting to simple name-calling.
Agree with you on all points, but the Utah Guv has a serious case of derp going on as well.
I’m sure Herbert’s dog whistle nonsense plays well to the cement heads in his state.
Yeah, why fight back at all and “antagonize” these villainous dimwits! You don’t need to be voted “most popular” when reason and the Constitution are on one’s side, you know.
Gov.Herbert needs to learn the difference between enforce and defend. And someone needs to ask him when he chose to be a hetrosexual
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Yeah I kind of agree. The LGBT leader seems to be missing the point of Herbert’s hyperbole. Granted, the governor is purely motivated by anti-gay animus, but he does raise a question that I don’t know the answer to: When is an attorney general allowed to decide not to defend a law in court?
As I understand it, the justification for many state attorneys general to opt out of defending their respective state laws banning same-sex marriage is that there is no legal foundation on which they can even pretend to craft a defense.
The governor’s hyperbole about governors picking and choosing which laws to enforce is just silly though, for a number of reasons.
Classify his words as Federal Hate Speech, sentence him to death in his own sate. let him be executed on a fast track so he can become a religious martyr.
Justice is served.
utah = 7 brides for 1 brother. great movie.
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Name calling? When did he get called names?
Labeling his comments “Hate Speech” implies that he is motivated by hate and therefore a bigot. To be clear, he probably is a bigot, but why go there when:
a) It antagonizes people you’d like to win over to your cause
b) It would take only slightly more effort to engage him on the actual substance of his ridiculous comments.
I’ll even suggest that because his comments, with context removed, are not in and of themselves hateful or bigoted, it enhances his credibility and decreases the accuser’s when such accusations are made.
The longer this discussion goes on, the stronger public support for marriage equality becomes. Comments like this are an attempt to shut down the conversation. That’s just bad strategy.
In the case of PA Attorney General Kathleen Kane, the decision not to defend the law in court was due to the SCOTUS decision on the matter. She did not want to waste PA’s money and resources defending a case that would not prevail. Gov. Corbett, who is also a lawyer, on the other hand, decided to waste PA’s money and resources. Kane has been vindicated.
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